Micro digital signage hardware integration

ABSTRACT

A system to display information using a display shelf of a retailer may include a first display configured to be attached to a first edge portion of the display shelf and to display information related to a first product. A second display may be configured to be attached to a second edge portion of the display shelf and to display information related to a second product. The first display and the second display can be configured to have a height similar to a height of the first and the second edge portion of the shelf. The first display and the second display may also be configured to display information related to a third product as if the first display is continuously connected to the second display as an extended display.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to the field ofdata processing, and in some embodiments, specifically relate todisplaying data on a digital signage.

Discussion

Price tags in grocery stores may be typically plastic or paper withadhesive. Managing these tags can be time consuming, error prone andexpensive. Currently, the pricing of products might be a manual process.A typical grocery store might have over 25,000 SKUs on which to managepricing. Most stores employ one to two full time employees just tomanage the pricing displays on a daily basis. Performing productionselection can be a time consuming in-person direct observation activity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The multiple drawings refer to the embodiments of the invention. Whileembodiments of the invention described herein is subject to variousmodifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof havebeen shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein bedescribed in detail.

FIG. 1A a diagram that illustrates a front left perspective view exampleof a micro digital signage (MDS) unit, in accordance with someembodiments;

FIG. 1B illustrates a front left perspective view example of a sectionof a shelf that may be used to attach to a MDS unit, in accordance withsome embodiments;

FIG. 1C illustrates an example cross-section of the shelf shown in FIG.1B;

FIG. 2A is a diagram that illustrates a front right perspective viewexample of a MDS unit, in accordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating an example of interconnecting aplurality of MDS units, in accordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a diagram that illustrates a back view example of a MDS unit,in accordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a diagram that illustrates a top view of an example retainingmechanism, in accordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 5 is a diagram that illustrates a bottom view of an exampleretaining mechanism, in accordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 6 is a diagram that illustrates example components in a MDS unit,in accordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 7A is a network diagram that illustrates an example of componentsin a network that may be used to implement the MDS units, in accordancewith some embodiments;

FIG. 7B is a flow diagram that illustrates an example of a method ofenabling multiple displays to be used to display merchandise relatedinformation, in accordance with some embodiments; and

FIG. 8 is a diagram of an example computer system that may be used withembodiments of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

For some embodiments, methods and apparatuses of enabling displayingmerchandise related information to consumers using digital signage unitsare disclosed. The merchandise related information may be associatedwith retailers, advertisers, brand managers or any entities that desireto present the merchandise related information to the consumers usingone or more digital signage units installed at positions where themerchandises may be physically displayed. The digital signage unit maybe configured to operate independently or together with other digitalsignage units. The digital signage unit may include at least aprocessor, a communication module and a display. In addition, thedigital signage unit may communicate with a server computing system toreceive the merchandise related information which may include pricinginformation and advertising information.

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth,such as examples of specific data signals, components, connections, etc.in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various embodimentsof the present invention. It will be apparent, however, to one skilledin the art that the embodiments of the present invention may bepracticed without these specific details. In other instances, well knowncomponents or methods have not been described in detail but rather inblock diagrams in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the embodimentsof the present invention. Reference may be made to the accompanyingdrawings that form a part hereof, and in which it is shown by way ofillustration specific embodiments in which the invention can bepracticed. It is to be understood that other embodiments can be used andstructural changes can be made without departing from the scope of theembodiments of this invention. As used herein, the terms “couple,”“connect,” and “attach” are interchangeable and include various forms ofconnecting one part to another either directly or indirectly. Also, itshould be appreciated that one or more structural features described inone embodiment could be implemented in a different embodiment, even ifnot specifically mentioned as being a feature thereof. Thus, thespecific details set forth are merely exemplary. The specific detailsmay be varied from and still be contemplated to be within the spirit andscope of embodiments of the present invention.

Described herein are embodiments of a micro digital signage (MDS) unitconfigured to primarily deliver information to consumers in areas wheremerchandises may be displayed. One example of such an area is aretailer's store. The retailers can benefit from using the MDS units toimprove customer service, improve pricing and coupon delivery andenhance a store's overall ambiance. The consumers may benefit byreceiving informative information (e.g., nutrition, discounts, recipe,etc.) delivered by the MDS unit non-intrusively via a display associatedwith the MDS unit. The MDS unit can therefore enhance the consumer'sshopping experience while promoting specials and products and enablingpricing strategies for the retailers. Further, the MDS unit may beconfigured to enable video analytics, shelf disarray notification,traffic pattern analysis, store heat maps of consumer dwell time, andother applications that are not possible with the static paper pricingtags as used today.

Turning now to FIGS. 1A-1C, FIG. 1A is a diagram that illustrates afront left view example of a micro digital signage unit, in accordancewith some embodiments. Diagram 100 includes a micro digital signage(MDS) unit having height 125, depth 130 and length 135. For someembodiments, the MDS unit is configured to fit on a display shelftypically seen in a retail shop such as, for example, a supermarket. Thedigital signage unit may be located at a shelf edge where the paperprice tags are typically used to display the price information. The MDSunit may be configured to provide the merchandise-related informationabout the products that are displayed on the shelves where the MDS unitis positioned. For example, the merchandise-related information mayinclude price, coupons, advertising, specials, manufacturer-providedinformation, social network information relative to the merchandise(e.g., like, reviews, etc.), merchandise-related games, etc.

The MDS unit may include camera module 138, a display 105, male pins 110and 115 and interface connector 120. The camera module 138 may be usedto collect video analytics. The display 105 may be a touch-sensitivedisplay and may be configured to display information independently ortogether with neighboring displays in a border-less configuration. Thedisplay 105 may be a color display. Using the touch-sensitive display105, a consumer may interact with the information being displayed. Forexample, the consumer may cause nutritional facts associated with a foodmerchandise to be displayed, or the consumer may playmerchandise-related games. Power and data may be transferred among aplurality of the MDS units through the interface connector 120. The malepins 110 and 115 may also be used to transfer low voltage power. The MDSunit may have a small form factor with, for example, the height 125 atapproximately 2 inches, the depth 130 at approximately ⅜ inch, and thelength 135 at approximately 6 inches.

FIG. 1B illustrates a front left view example of a section of a shelfthat may be used to attach to a MDS unit, in accordance with someembodiments. The shelf includes a shelf top 140, a front edge 145, and aside edge 151. Merchandises are typically placed on the shelf top 140,and price information is typically displayed on the front edge 145. Thefront edge 145 is considered to be an edge that is most visible to aconsumer. The front edge 145 is typically the edge that the consumeruses to look for price information. For some embodiments, the height ofthe display 105 (shown in FIG. 1A) is configured to be approximately thesize of the front edge 145. This may be advantageous because it enablesthe MDS unit to be attached to many existing shelves without requiringthe retailers to replace the existing shelves to accommodate the MDSunit. It may be possible that various products may be placed on theshelf top 140, and the display 105 may display information related to atleast one of those products.

FIG. 1C illustrates an example cross-section of the shelf. Thecross-section view illustrates top and bottom retaining portions 150 and155 which are designed to keep a paper price tag in place. As will bedescribed, for some embodiments, the retaining portions 150 and 155 maybe used with a retaining mechanism to keep the MDS unit in place.

FIG. 2A is a diagram that illustrates a front right view example of aMDS unit, in accordance with some embodiments. Diagram 200 includes aMDS unit similar to the MDS unit illustrated in FIG. 1. The MDS unit mayinclude interface pin receptacles 210 and 215 and connector receptacle220 on its right side. The interface pin receptacles 210 and 215 andconnector receptacle 220 may enable the MDS unit to interconnect to aneighboring MDS unit to its right. The male pins 110 and 115 and theinterface connector 120 may enable the MDS unit to interconnect to aneighboring MDS unit to its left. This enables interconnecting theplurality of MDS units. It may be noted that the number of male pins 110and 115 and the number of receptacles 210 and 215 may vary depending onthe implementations. For example, only one male pin and one femalereceptacle may be used, or multiple male pins and multiple femalereceptacles may be used.

FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating an example of interconnecting aplurality of MDS units, in accordance with some embodiments. In thisexample, a row of four MDS units 240, 250, 260 and 270 are lined up andinterconnected to one another using their respective male pins 110, 115,interface connector 120, interface pin receptacles 210, 215 andconnector receptacle 220. The combination of the interface pins,connector and their corresponding receptacles provide a pathway for dataflow and electrical charging of the connected micro digital displayunits.

Since the display 105 of each of these MDS units 240, 250, 260 and 270may be configured to operate in the border-less configuration, theytogether form an extended or a virtually continuous border-less display.As an example, the MDS units 240 and 250 may operate independently ofall other MDS units by displaying the “text 1”, “text 2”, “image 1” and“image 2” information within their own displays. As another example, theMDS units 260 and 270 may operate together by displaying the “text 3”and “image 3” information across their display units. As anotherexample, the MDS units 240, 250, 260 and 270 may operate together bydisplaying the “this text is displayed across all signage units”information across all of their display units. For some embodiments, anobject displayed on the display of one MDS unit may be dragged anddropped into the display of a neighboring MDS unit. This may beconvenient for an administrator to rearrange the information to bevisible to the consumers. For some embodiments, the MDS unit may beplaced in an admin mode to enable an administrator to perform contentmanagement activities using the touch-sensitive feature of the display105. When appropriate, the MDS unit may be switched to a consumer mode.The setting of the appropriate modes may be performed by a systemadministrator using a server computer system (described in FIG. 7A).

FIG. 3 is a diagram that illustrates a back view example of a MDS unit,in accordance with some embodiments. Diagram 300 includes a MDS unitsimilar to the MDS unit illustrated in FIG. 1A. The back side 305 of theMDS unit may include multiple slots 320, 325, 330 and 335 configured toreceive a retaining mechanism. For some embodiments, the slots 320 and335 are generally vertical and positioned near the left and right sideof the MDS unit. The slots 325 and 330 are generally horizontal andpositioned near the bottom side of the MDS unit, as illustrated. Forsome embodiments, the back side 305 of the MDS unit may also include amechanical engagement mechanism or activator 310 to engage or disengagethe male pins 110, 115 and the interface connector 120. When theengagement mechanism 310 is in a first position (e.g., slide to a leftmost position), the male pins 110, 115 and the interface connector 120are extended out from the body portion of the MDS unit. When theengagement mechanism 310 is in a second position (e.g., slide to a rightmost position), the male pins 110, 115 and the interface connector 120are retracted into the body portion of the MDS unit.

The operation of the engagement mechanism 310 may help disconnecting orremoving the MDS unit from its neighboring MDS unit for maintenance.Accordingly, the MDS unit may be referred to as being field replaceable.This capability allows removing a MDS unit from a middle of a rowwithout disconnecting the entire row from one end to the other end. Itmay be noted that since each MDS unit is capable of operatingindependently, when one MDS unit is removed from a row, the remainingMDS units in the row may still be operable. When a row is interruptedbecause one MDS unit is removed, an emergency beacon may be generatedand transmitted to a server computer system in a back office. Further,when a row is interrupted, the power to one or more of the MDS units mayalso be interrupted. In this situation, the backup battery power onthese units may be used.

For some embodiments, the engagement mechanism 310 may be positionedwithin a slot 315 to enable the engagement mechanism 310 to be easilymoved to its various positions. The slot 315 may also help keep the backside 305 of the MDS unit generally flush. It may be noted that eventhough the slot 315 in the current example has a shape of an arc, othershapes are possible. It may also be noted that the position of the slot315 is only exemplary and other position may be possible.

FIG. 4 is a diagram that illustrates a top view of an example retainingmechanism, in accordance with some embodiments. The illustratedretaining mechanism 400 is a spring loading and locking mechanism thatincludes two connected arc-shape body portions connected to one anotherat an edge of the arc. Each of the arc-shape body portions may includetwo connectors for a shelf and two connectors for a MDS unit. Over all,the retaining mechanism 400 may include two sets of connectors. Thefirst set of connectors is configured to attach the retaining mechanism400 into a shelf edge. The second set of connectors is configured toattach the retaining mechanism 400 into the back side of the MDS unit.Referring the FIG. 4, the first set of connectors includes connectors460, 465, 470 and 475, and the second set of connectors includesconnectors 420, 425, 430 and 435. Each of the connectors in the firstand second sets may have a spring force to enable holding the connectorsin the MDS unit and in the shelf. For example, the spring force mayenable adjusting one arc-shape body portions to be flexible enough toinsert the connectors in the first set into openings associated with ashelf edge. Similarly, the spring force may enable adjusting the otherarc-shape body portion to be flexible enough to insert the connectors inthe second set into openings associated with a back side of the MDSunit.

FIG. 5 is a diagram that illustrates a bottom view of the exampleretaining mechanism, in accordance with some embodiments. It should benoted that the retaining mechanism illustrated in FIGS. 4-5 is designedto keep the MDS unit in place at the edge of a shelf such that thedisplay 105 of the MDS unit is visible to the consumer. The design ofthe retaining mechanism 400 may be dependent on the design of the edgeof the shelf as well as the design of the back side of the MDS unit. Assuch, variations of the design of the shelf, the edge of the shelfand/or the back side of the MDS unit may necessitate appropriatemodifications to the retaining mechanism 400. Regardless of themodification, the function of the retaining mechanism 400 may be toattach the MDS unit to the edge of the shelf while allowing the removalof the MDS unit from the edge of the shelf for maintenance, replacement,etc.

FIG. 6 is a diagram that illustrates example components in a MDS unit,in accordance with some embodiments. An MDS unit 600 may include aprocessor 605, communication module 610, disconnection detection module615, display module 620, camera module 625, temperature and motionsensor 630, power module 635, interface module 640, and contentmanagement module 645. Although not shown, other modules may also beincluded in the MDS unit 600 to enable it to perform the functions asdescribed herein.

For some embodiments, the temperature and motion sensor 630 areconfigured to provide temperature and motion sensing capabilities.Although shown as one, there may be a separate temperature sensor andmotion sensor. The camera module 625 is configured to enable collectionof video analytics. The camera module 625 may also be configured toperform various other operations that take advantage of itscapabilities. The MDS unit may also be configured to gather data fromthe shelf. The data collected by the temperature sensor 630 and thecamera module 625 may be reported back to a server computer system(shown in FIG. 7A). The server computer system may also provide data(e.g., price, advertising, etc.) back to the MDS unit for display to theconsumers 780 (shown in FIG. 7A). The communication module 610 mayenable the MDS unit 600 to be connected to a network using Wi-Fi(wireless fidelity, e.g., IEEE 802.11a-1999 or 802.11a, an amendment tothe IEEE 802.11 specification that added a higher data rate of up to 54Mbit/s using the 5 GHz band) or wired connection. The illustrateddisplay module 620 is configured to enable the MDS unit to have a colordisplay capability.

Power to the MDS unit may be provided and/or managed by the power module635. The power may include the battery power and power provided by thestore where the MDS unit 600 is located. For example, the power from thestore may be provided at an end of an aisle where the shelves and theMDS unit 600 are located, and the power may be transmitted through rowsof MDS units. The power may be normal power or low voltage power. Thepower may also be used to recharge the battery in the MDS unit. Theinterface module 640 may be configured to monitor and enable data to betransmitted to and received from the neighboring MDS units. Thedisconnect detection module 615 may be configured to monitor for anydisconnection that may occur within a row of MDS units and to alert theserver computer system of such disconnect. The content management module645 may be configured to manage the display of the information providedby the server computer system on the display of the MDS unit. The MDSunit 600 may also include memory to store instructions and applicationsto enable the processor 605 to perform operations related to the variousmodules contained within the MDS unit 600.

FIG. 7A is a network diagram that illustrates an example of componentsin a network that may be used to implement the MDS units, in accordancewith some embodiments. Diagram 700 may include a network within a storewhere multiple rows 720-760 of MDS units are employed. For someembodiment, the MDS unit located on the furthest right may be configuredto act as an access point to enable wireless communication to thenetwork via router 665. As described above, each MDS unit includes aWi-Fi capability. When disconnect occurs in a row of MDS units, theWi-Fi in the MDS units remained in the row may be turned on.

The network 705 may include a local area network (LAN), a wide areanetwork (WAN), 3G, 4G or a combination of these various types ofcommunication protocols to enable the MDS unit to communicate with theserver computer system and to any other network connected resourcesand/or services. For example, cloud-based resources and services may beavailable to enable the rich content related to the merchandises to bedisplayed on the display of the MDS unit within a store, within multiplestores belonging to a chain, within multiple stores located in ageographical area, and so on.

A server computer system 710 may be located, for example, in the backoffice of a store. The server computer system 710 may be connected tothe network 705 to provide data communication and content distributionto all of the MDS units installed on the shelves. The server computersystem 710 may be managed by an administrator or control agent 770. Theadministrator 770 may manage content that may be distributed to the MDSunits for display to the consumers 780. The content may be specificallycustomized for each MDS unit when the MDS unit is to display informationindependently of the adjacent MDS units. Alternatively or in addition,the content may be specifically customized for a group of MDS units whenthe displays of these MDS units are used to display themerchandise-related information as one extended display.

The server computer system 710 may also be coupled with cloud-basedresources and/or services accessible via the network 705. Some examplesof the cloud-based resources and/or services include ratings,advertising content, licensing and meta-data for video analyticscollection, etc.

Turning now to FIG. 7B, a method of enabling multiple displays to beused to display merchandise related information is shown. The method maycorrespond to the information described with FIGS. 1-7A. The method maybe implemented as a set of logic instructions stored in a machine- orcomputer-readable storage medium such as random access memory (RAM),read only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), flash memory, etc., inconfigurable logic such as programmable logic arrays (PLAs), fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGAs), complex programmable logic devices(CPLDs), in fixed-functionality logic hardware using circuit technologysuch as application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), CMOS ortransistor-transistor logic (TTL) technology, or any combinationthereof. For example, computer program code to carry out operationsshown in the method may be written in any combination of one or moreprogramming languages, including an object oriented programming languagesuch as C++ or the like and conventional procedural programminglanguages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programminglanguages.

Block 780 provides for applying a first housing to a first edge portionof a first shelf. The first housing may include processor, atouch-sensitive display, a camera module, a motion and temperaturesensor, etc. For example, the first housing may include modules similarto the modules described in FIG. 6. The first housing may be appliedsuch that its display is to be visible to the consumer. Block 782provides for applying a second housing to the second edge portion of thefirst shelf. The second housing is configured similarly to the firsthousing and is applied such that its display is to be visible to theconsumer. The second edge portion of the first shelf and the firstportion of the first shelf may be distant from one another or they maybe adjacent one another.

Block 784 provides for applying a third housing to a first edge of asecond shelf. The third housing is configured similarly to the firsthousing or the second housing and is applied such that its display is tobe visible to the consumer. The first shelf and the second shelf may bein the same row, or they may be in different rows. The rows may be in aretail store where the merchandise related information is displayed tothe consumers. The merchandise related information may be distributedfrom a server computer system. Block 786 provides for enabling thedisplay associated with each of the housings to be able to display themerchandise related information. Each display may present differentinformation related to different merchandises. However, when twodisplays are placed adjacent to one another, they may be used as oneextended display. Block 788 provides for enabling each of the housingsto capture video analytics information using its camera module.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of an example computer system that may be used withembodiments of the invention. The computing system 802 is only oneexample of a suitable computing system, such as a mobile computingdevice, and is not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope ofuse or functionality of the design. Neither should the computing system802 be interpreted as having any dependency or requirement relating toany one or combination of components illustrated. The design isoperational with numerous other general purpose or special purposecomputing systems. Examples of well-known computing systems,environments, and/or configurations that may be suitable for use withthe design include, but are not limited to, personal computers, servercomputers, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessor systems,microprocessor-based systems, set top boxes, programmable consumerelectronics, minicomputers, mainframe computers, distributed computingenvironments that include any of the above systems or devices, and thelike. For example, the computer system 802 may be implemented as a MDSunit or a server computer system.

Embodiments of the present invention may be described in the generalcontext of computing device executable instructions, such as programmodules, being executed by a computer. Generally, program modulesinclude routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc.that performs particular tasks or implement particular abstract datatypes. Those skilled in the art can implement the description and/orfigures herein as computer-executable instructions, which can beembodied on any form of computing machine readable media discussedbelow.

Embodiments of the present invention may also be practiced indistributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remoteprocessing devices that are linked through a communications network. Ina distributed computing environment, program modules may be located inboth local and remote computer storage media including memory storagedevices.

Referring to FIG. 8, the computer system 802 may include many of thecomponents of the MDS described in FIG. 1A and FIG. 6. The computersystem 802 may also include many components that may enable it tooperate as a server computer system as described in FIG. 7A. Thecomputer system 802 may include, but are not limited to, a processingunit 820 having one or more processing cores, a system memory 830, and asystem bus 821 that couples various system components including thesystem memory 830 to the processing unit 820. The system bus 821 may beany of several types of bus structures including a memory bus or memorycontroller, a peripheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety ofbus architectures. By way of example, and not limitation, sucharchitectures include Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, MicroChannel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, VideoElectronics Standards Association (VESA) locale bus, and PeripheralComponent Interconnect (PCI) bus also known as Mezzanine bus.

The computer system 802 typically includes a variety of computerreadable media. Computer readable media can be any available media thatcan be accessed by computer system 802 and includes both volatile andnonvolatile media, removable and non-removable media. By way of example,and not limitation, computer readable media may store information suchas computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules orother data. Computer storage media include, but are not limited to, RAM,ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digitalversatile disks (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices,or any other medium which can be used to store the desired informationand which can be accessed by computer system 802. Communication mediatypically embodies computer readable instructions, data structures, orprogram modules.

The system memory 830 includes computer storage media in the form ofvolatile and/or nonvolatile memory such as read only memory (ROM) 831and random access memory (RAM) 832. A basic input/output system (BIOS)833, containing the basic routines that help to transfer informationbetween elements within computer system 802, such as during start-up, istypically stored in ROM 831. RAM 832 typically contains data and/orprogram modules that are immediately accessible to and/or presentlybeing operated on by processing unit 820. By way of example, and notlimitation, FIG. 8 illustrates operating system 834, applicationprograms 835, other program modules 836, and program data 837.

The computer system 802 may also include other removable/non-removablevolatile/nonvolatile computer storage media. By way of example only,FIG. 8 illustrates a hard disk drive 841 that reads from or writes tonon-removable, nonvolatile magnetic media, a magnetic disk drive 851that reads from or writes to a removable, nonvolatile magnetic disk 852,and an optical disk drive 855 that reads from or writes to a removable,nonvolatile optical disk 856 such as a CD ROM or other optical media.Other removable/non-removable, volatile/nonvolatile computer storagemedia that can be used in the exemplary operating environment include,but are not limited to, USB drives and devices, magnetic tape cassettes,flash memory cards, digital versatile disks, digital video tape, solidstate RAM, solid state ROM, and the like. The hard disk drive 841 istypically connected to the system bus 821 through a non-removable memoryinterface such as interface 840, and magnetic disk drive 851 and opticaldisk drive 855 are typically connected to the system bus 821 by aremovable memory interface, such as interface 850.

The drives and their associated computer storage media discussed aboveand illustrated in FIG. 8, provide storage of computer readableinstructions, data structures, program modules and other data for thecomputer system 802. In FIG. 8, for example, hard disk drive 841 isillustrated as storing operating system 844, application programs 845,other program modules 846, and program data 847. Note that thesecomponents can either be the same as or different from operating system834, application programs 835, other program modules 836, and programdata 837. The operating system 844, the application programs 845, theother program modules 846, and the program data 847 are given differentnumeric identification here to illustrate that, at a minimum, they aredifferent copies.

A user may enter commands and information into the computer system 802through input devices such as a keyboard 862, a microphone 863, and apointing device 861, such as a mouse, trackball or touch pad or touchscreen. Other input devices (not shown) may include a joystick, gamepad, scanner, or the like. These and other input devices are oftenconnected to the processing unit 820 through a user input interface 860that is coupled with the system bus 821, but may be connected by otherinterface and bus structures, such as a parallel port, game port or auniversal serial bus (USB). A monitor 891 or other type of displaydevice is also connected to the system bus 821 via an interface, such asa video interface 890. In addition to the monitor, computers may alsoinclude other peripheral output devices such as speakers 897 and printer896, which may be connected through an output peripheral interface 890.

The computer system 802 may operate in a networked environment usinglogical connections to one or more remote computers, such as a remotecomputer 880. The remote computer 880 may be a personal computer, ahand-held device, a server, a router, a network PC, a peer device orother common network node, and typically includes many or all of theelements described above relative to the computer system 802. Thelogical connections depicted in FIG. 8 include a local area network(LAN) 871 and a wide area network (WAN) 873, but may also include othernetworks. Such networking environments are commonplace in offices,enterprise-wide computer networks, intranets and the Internet.

When used in a LAN networking environment, the computer system 802 isconnected to the LAN 871 through a network interface or adapter 870.When used in a WAN networking environment, the computer system 802typically includes a modem 872 or other means for establishingcommunications over the WAN 873, such as the Internet. The modem 872,which may be internal or external, may be connected to the system bus821 via the user-input interface 860, or other appropriate mechanism. Ina networked environment, program modules depicted relative to thecomputer system 802, or portions thereof, may be stored in a remotememory storage device. By way of example, and not limitation, FIG. 8illustrates remote application programs 885 as residing on remotecomputer 880. It will be appreciated that the network connections shownare exemplary and other means of establishing a communications linkbetween the computers may be used.

It should be noted that some embodiments of the present invention may becarried out on a computer system such as that described with respect toFIG. 8. However, some embodiments of the present invention may becarried out on a server, a computer devoted to message handling,handheld devices, or on a distributed system in which different portionsof the present design may be carried out on different parts of thedistributed computing system.

Another device that may be coupled with the system bus 821 is a powersupply such as a battery or a Direct Current (DC) power supply) andAlternating Current (AC) adapter circuit. The DC power supply may be abattery, a fuel cell, or similar DC power source needs to be rechargedon a periodic basis. The communication module (or modem) 872 may employa Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) to establish a wirelesscommunication channel. The communication module 872 may implement awireless networking standard such as Institute of Electrical andElectronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard, IEEE std. 802.11-1999,published by IEEE in 1999.

Examples of mobile computing devices may be a laptop computer, a tabletcomputer, Netbook, cell phone, a personal digital assistant, or othersimilar device with on board processing power and wirelesscommunications ability that is powered by a Direct Current (DC) powersource that supplies DC voltage to the mobile computing device and thatis solely within the mobile computing device and needs to be rechargedon a periodic basis, such as a fuel cell or a battery.

Although embodiments of this invention have been fully described withreference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be noted that variouschanges and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in theart. Such changes and modifications are to be understood as beingincluded within the scope of embodiments of this invention as defined bythe appended claims. For example, specific examples are provided forshapes and materials; however, embodiments include those variationsobvious to a person skilled in the art, such as changing a shape orcombining materials together. Further, while some specific embodimentsof the invention have been shown the invention is not to be limited tothese embodiments. For example, several specific modules have beenshown. Each module performs a few specific functions. However, all ofthese functions could be grouped into one module or even broken downfurther into scores of modules. Most functions performed by electronichardware components may be duplicated by software emulation and viceversa. The embodiments of the invention are to be understood as notlimited by the specific embodiments described herein, but only by scopeof the appended claims.

1. An apparatus comprising: a first housing having a front side and aback side, the front side including a display, the first housingconfigured to be coupled with an edge of a shelf, and wherein thedisplay is configured to display information related to at least onemerchandise to be placed on the shelf; and an attachment mechanismconfigured to enable the first housing to be attached to at least oneadjacent housing such that the display of the first housing and adisplay of the adjacent housing are lined up to form a virtuallycontinuous display, wherein the display of the first housing isconfigured to display the information related to the at least onemerchandise using one or more of following implementations: (a)independently of the display of the adjacent housing, (b) together withthe display of the adjacent housing using the virtually continuousdisplay, and (c) partially independently and partially together with thedisplay of the adjacent housing. 2-27. (canceled)